This that and the other thing....

Holy shit. Where'd all that time go? Workin' a lot, mostly. Whup! Got to the bottom of that really quickly. The girlfriend's now working at the National Aquarium. One'd think that'd give me more time for this admittedly silly project, but I get discouraged by lack of feedback and then end up doing other things... BUT! Logical reasons for not doing something are only a temporary setback. I present part five of the legendary LiveJournal series... Mark reads Farnham's Legend...

Chapter 9:

We open with Billy/Kyle regaining consciousness amid a real, absolute crazy crapload of incorrect punctuation. I usually hate this sort of thing, but given the translated nature of the work, the general commitment to creating actual literature, and the actual substance of the scene-- a whole buncha pain punchin' ol' Brennan right in the gut, face, neck, hands, innards, and control panel (alright, the last one was the ship)-- I'm very OK with it. If anything, it gives the book still more charm.

The book goes onto mention, "it was a wonder he was still alive!" -- I didn't add that exclamation point, either.

After several pages of description, some unnecessarily internal dialog, some more unneeded exclamation points, the word "Cripes!", and countless punctuation mistakes later, we're still in the same place: the dead hulk of the X shuttle.

For all the crap I give this book, it's engrossing when Brennan leaves his ship to look at the damage outside. You really feel for the guy in a true-to-form Edgar Rice Burroughs passage.

We learn that the ship's computer system, after an exciting repair sequence featuring Brennan's failing helmet, is named Valerie. Not mentioned on the album, but I'm happy I know.

Chapter nine ends a few more punctuation errors later with Brennan in his bandaged-up ship and some strange ship approaching.

Chapter 10:

Back to Nopileos and his I'm-far-too-lazy-to-type-their-alien-names friends... they've transferred their untold riches into a Boron charity.

The chapter begins in a way that's really... well... alien. A professor keeps muttering curses ("Rotten eggs!" and "Crushed eggs!"); Nopileos' grandfather, the Teladi CEO, says rather unnecessarily that their people have two stomachs and three hearts... I mean, I often like to strut around when others have done wrong and describe my body parts. The CEO naturally bans Nopileos, but not before revealing a sort of respect for him. Nopileos is banned from the hatchery by a CEO whose "claws are tied." After all, he'll be "full business age" soon enough.

It's like the author takes every chance to remind folks that these characters aren't human... but still, it works.

Anyway, it's a short chapter. Essentially just the reluctant banishment of Nopileos. He's given a private yacht and taken to Seizewell.

Chapter 11:

Why did we break from Chapter 10? It's another Nopileos chapter.

Whatever. We open at the shipyards of Seizewell. We learn that Teladi are raised by their grandparents... and I come to realize a lot of care and thought has gone into the world generating. Even the planet at Seizewell has a name (Platinum Ball).

The description of Nopileos' new ship is goddamn astonishing. The album mentions an "egg-shaped boat"... but that seems to do this a great injustice. To the author's credit, the ship is created to the Teladi aesthetic, but it's presented romantically to a human.

The ship is truly glorious and Nopileos is, of course, wondering what his grandfather is up to...

So... three chapters without much action. Brennan fixes his ship and sees something coming in the distance. Nopileos is banished, but provided a really sick ride.